A couple of years ago I wrote an article for the Covenant Discipleship Quarterly describing the enormous impact that my Covenant Discipleship group had on my life. Two years later I feel a need to update its effect on me in hopes of inspiring others to consider joining a group.
It's now been four years since I accepted an invitation to join a Covenant Discipleship group. What I originally thought was going to be an interesting class became much more. It not only changed my way of thinking about various aspects of Christianity but also my daily routines. Upon reflection, I'm quite certain that without it I would have continued to be a member at Grace United Methodist Church. My love for my Christian family here would have assured that. I would still be doing what's asked of me and enjoying the Sunday services.
I'm also quite certain of what I would not be doing. I would not be on my second reading of the New Testament and first of the Old Testament. I would not be reading daily devotionals. I would not have read Dietrich Bonhoeffer, C. S. Lewis, Joseph Girzone, J. Oswald Sanders, Rob Weber, Greg Ogden, and William Barclay, just to name a few. I would not be enjoying the various perspectives of my fellow disciples; those very insights that expanded my understanding. I would not have developed the strong personal ties to them that accountability brings. And I certainly would not have such a great desire to try and understand so many of the mysteries of the Trinity. Being accountable to them has made me more accountable to myself.
For me, my Covenant Discipleship group is at least as important as attending Sunday worship. It drives me to want to better understand Jesus and his teachings and inspires me daily. I can't begin to stress enough how positive that commitment has been in my daily life.
I pray that more people will turn to what John Wesley considered the most important aspect of Methodism. I know from my own experience that your personal gain will be substantial. "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19).
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Marcel is a member of Grace United Methodist Church in Denver, Colorado.
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